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WORLD NEWS Saturday 1 July 2017

Roads blocked, transportation affected by strike in Brazil

By LILIANA MICHELENA labor and pension reforms
Associated Press because it is the return of
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A slavery,” said Iran de Pau-
general strike disrupted la, a lawyer and part of a
major cities across Brazil group called “Movement
on Friday, as union workers for Roofless Workers.”
protested President Michel ‘’Your company will lay you
Temer’s proposal to loosen off whenever they want,
labor laws and trim pension you won’t have any rights
benefits. and you’ll have to work
In Sao Paulo, protesters until you are 100, 200 years
blocked some of the city’s old.”
main roads and highways Protesters in Rio also gath-
and hindered access to ered in front of the Gua-
Guarulhos Airport, the big- nabara Palace, seat of the
gest in the country. state government. Univer-
In Rio de Janeiro, down- sity teachers demanded
town access was halted the government pay back Demonstrators protest against Brazil’s President Michel Temer and his proposed changes
early in the morning, with wages owed them. to labor laws and the pension system, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Friday, June 30, 2017. Unions
lines that stretched miles Thousands of public work- representing transportation workers and others called for the shutdown to protest proposals
(kilometers) behind strikers ers in the state of Rio de Ja- in Congress to loosen labor rules and trim pension benefits in Latin America’s largest nation.
and rows of burning tires. neiro haven’t been paid in (AP Photo/Andre Penner)
Many people were seen months thanks to an acute
getting off the buses and budget crisis. The strike also Horizonte and the capital, day. The labor proposal be- pay fewer benefits. The
walking or biking to their affected other big cities, in- Brasilia. Demonstrations fore Congress would make pension reform would raise
jobs. “We must defeat the cluding Porto Alegre, Belo were expected to inten- it easier for employers to the retirement age and trim
sify towards the end of the hire temporary workers and payments. q
Report: Venezuela’s defiant chief

prosecutor requesting protection

By FABIOLA SANCHEZ sidelined congress — chal-
CHRISTINE ARMARIO lenging Maduro’s push to
Associated Press rewrite the constitution and
CARACAS, Venezuela pressing charges against of-
(AP) — Venezuela’s chief ficers responsible for deaths
prosecutor asked the Inter- during anti-government
American Commission on protests.On Friday, Ortega
Human Rights for protec- Diaz’s office announced it
tion Friday, days after the was summoning the chief
Supreme Court barred her of Venezuela’s intelligence
from leaving the country agency, Gustavo Gonza-
and ordered her bank ac- lez, to appear on suspicion
counts frozen. of “committing grave and
Tensions between Luisa systemic violations of hu-
Ortega Diaz and President man rights.”
Nicolas Maduro’s social- Prosecutors said they are
ist administration have investigating incidents of
been steadily escalating illegitimate detentions,
since she contested a Su- arbitrary raids and cases
preme Court decision in in which people have re-
late March that dissolved mained imprisoned despite
the opposition-controlled court orders that they be
National Assembly and freed.
sparked a deadly wave of “The Public Ministry will
unrest. continue safeguarding the
Since then, she has be- protection and defense
come one of the few criti- of Venezuelans’ human
cal voices within the gov- rights,” her office said in a
ernment — other than the statement.q